Chiefs promote Andy Reid favorite Brett Veach to general manager

Veach, who is not quite 40 years old, is a favorite of head coach Andy Reid, and this transaction only strengthens the idea that Reid’s power play last month – when he signed a contract extension with Kansas City and the team announced the firing of GM John Dorsey a day later – worked.

Before Monday, Veach was the Chiefs’ co-director of player personnel with Mike Borgonzi, and was considered the top in-house candidate to replace Dorsey, due in large part to his relationship with Reid.

New Chief in charge: Brett Veach has been named Kansas City general manager. (Chiefs Twitter)

“After a comprehensive search process, I am pleased to announce that we have hired Brett Veach to serve as the next General Manager of the Kansas City Chiefs,” Chiefs owner Clark Hunt said in a statement. “Brett has a sharp football mind, a tremendous work ethic and a keen eye for finding talent. Over the last four seasons he’s played a critical role in building our football team. I look forward to working with him to continue to build on the strong foundation we have in place.”

Veach, just the seventh GM in Chiefs history, will report directly to Hunt.

“My family and I would like to extend our gratitude to Clark and the Hunt family for this incredible opportunity,” Veach said in a statement. “I am humbled and honored to serve as the General Manager of the Kansas City Chiefs. Over the last four seasons I’ve had the privilege to work alongside Andy Reid, John Dorsey and a great group of coaches and personnel staff. Together, we built a strong foundation of players that have helped us sustain success on the field. I’m looking forward to continuing our progress as we head into 2017.”

The Kansas City Star profiled Veach in a story posted to its website on Saturday; the Pennsylvania native, was a star football player at Mount Carmel Area High School, racking up nearly 2,800 all-purpose yards as a senior in 1996, leading the school to a 15-0 record and state title.

He went on to play at Delaware, where he also served as a graduate assistant on the football team, impressing nearly everyone he interacted with. Veach was recommended for a training camp internship with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he came to meet and impress Reid.

So much so that more than two years after the internship ended, Reid called Veach and offered him a job as his coaching assistant, which he did from 2007-09.

According to the Star story, in 2008 Reid tasked Veach with finding the best receiver the Eagles could draft in the second round. Veach’s pick: DeSean Jackson.

When Reid moved to Kansas City in 2013, Veach was among those that he brought with him.